Many people participate in racquet sports such as tennis, squash, racquetball, etc. Regardless of whether those people are novices, recreational players, or professional athletes, for a large number of them there is a goal of improving their skills. Thus, there is a need to develop cost-effective and efficient means for helping them to improve their skills, including their racquet strokes.
One aspect of racquet sports for which skill improvement devices is lacking is the teaching of how to introduce spin to and to control the spin of a ball. These skills may be both subtle and difficult to learn.
Spin is important because it enables one to direct the location of the ball while increasing the difficulty that an opponent will have in returning it. In addition, a rapidly spinning ball is less likely to be affected by ambient playing conditions than a ball with little or no spin. It has been reported that certain tennis players can impart spin to their balls between 200 and 300 radians per second. (Human Kinetics, Inc. 2007)
Despite the importance of creating and controlling spin, many players mistakenly focus exclusively on hitting with more power to increase the effectiveness of their shots. As a result, they compromise control and precision. Moreover, an opponent with any moderate skill level will not have increased difficulty in returning a ball that has been hit with increased force, but without spin.
Based on the critical role and difficulty that creating and controlling spin has on an aspiring player's development, there is a need for new training tools to develop consistency in introducing spin to a tennis stroke. The present invention addresses this need.